Date:         Fri, 17 Jun 2005 06:51:33 -0700
Reply-To:     Jeffrey Earl <jefferrata@YAHOO.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Jeffrey Earl <jefferrata@YAHOO.COM>
Subject:      Seeking "Ice Guard"
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1

As an upper-Midwest homeowner who has had the dubious
pleasure of installing BOTH of these products (on my
house, not my van), allow me to compare and contrast.

ICE GUARD
A thick (1/16 to 1/8") asphalt-based, rubber-enhanced
sheet roofing material. Generally installed atop the
tar-paper underlayment but beneath the shingles, along
the entire lower gutter edge of the roof. Its purpose
is to prevent the repeated thawing and freezing of
melting snow from forming "ice dams" beneath the
shingles and intruding into the roof sheathing.
Usually comes in VERY LARGE rools: 75 feet long by 36"
or 48" in width. A single roll would completely cover
the interiors of a half-dozen Vanagons. Bloody
expensive, too. Very self-adhesive, and its adhesion
is only enhanced by the baking summer sun. Probably
only found in regions where snow and ice are common.
http://www.protectowrap.com/cat_roofjiffy.php

FLASHING TAPE
Virtually identical to the Ice Guard, but includes an
aluminum-foil top layer, and is typically stocked in
50-foot rolls, 6 and 8" widths (although greater
widths are available). A general purpose sealing tape
intended as a substitute for good old-fashioned
galvanized or aluminum sheet-metal flashing, used
around chimneys and vent stacks, dormers, etc.. For
Vanagon applications, the smaller widths and shorter
rolls probably make it easier to install, though the
foil layer likely serves no purpose here. Should be
available nationwide, or at least in regions where
water occasionally falls from the sky ...
http://www.protectowrap.com/cat_btfps45.php

Both these products can be easily cut with a utility
knife, heavy-duty scissors, or aviation snips. Both
are VERY ADHESIVE, so do your fitting and cutting
BEFORE removing the backing paper, cuz once ya stick
'er down, she ain't a'comin' back up.

Having had my fill of both products, I will not be
installing either of them in my Westy as a sound
dampener, and shall instead simply be turning my radio
up to "11".

Jeffrey Earl
1983 diesel Westfalia "Vanasazi"
http://www.vanthology.com/

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